Kuro Mirai
by cannonspectacle
Summary: Takuma Yuuto, a second-year Persona user from Inaba with the Wild Card ability, has always depended on his friends for help. So when he finds himself stranded in a world of Varanium and Gastrea, he just doesn't know what to do. Note: there are spoilers within. Feedback is appreciated!
1. Prologue: Of Shadows and Men

Prologue: Of Shadows and Men

A Shadow is a dark part of one's ego. When mastered by the ego, a Shadow becomes a Persona.

That statement is meant to be purely metaphorical, not to mention theoretical, but I can personally attest to the quite literal nature of those words.

Shadows are monstrous beings of pure hatred. They come in many shapes and sizes, but share one commonality: they are born from the suppressed thoughts and emotions of human beings. Shadows don't normally manifest themselves in the human world (otherwise, I wouldn't be explaining them to you), but rather in another dimension. One such dimension was the Dark Hour that occurred between the passing of one day to the next; this temporal anomaly was eventually eradicated. Another of these dimensions is the Midnight Channel, a realm within television sets that contains the thoughts, desires, and wishes of the common man.

Occasionally, within the Midnight Channel, a person would be trapped inside. There, he or she would be forced to face his or her personal Shadow. More often than not, the captive would deny that the Shadow is another version of him- or herself, causing the Shadow to separate from its host and gain immense power. Then, once the fog clears, the Shadow will attempt to kill the human from which it spawned.

I had to face my own Shadow in such a way. He ridiculed me and taunted me and revealed my darkest emotions. When I denied him, he very nearly killed me in his fit of rage. If it weren't for Teddie, I wouldn't be alive right now.

But I digress.

There exist very few people who have mastered their respective Shadows and obtained the power of Persona. Of those, an even narrower group exists: those with the Wild Card power, or the capability to possess multiple Personae. One of those was Makato Yuki of Port Island, who gave his life to prevent Nyx, the embodiment of darkness, from bringing about humanity's doom. There's also Yu Narukami, a high school student from Inaba, who vanquished Ameno-Sagiri and Izanami in the Midnight Channel.

And there's me. Takuma Yuuto.

Although I possess the Wild Card, I am still a novice at using the power of Persona. Even though I've fought countless Shadows in the Midnight Channel with my closest friends—my only friends—none of the Shadows I've faced have been particularly powerful. I had great potential—potential to be as strong as even Narukami, but I am still weak. It didn't help, having my Shadow spill those deep, forbidden thoughts into the daylight like that. To this day, I have nightmares about my encounter with my Shadow. Until I have the strength to overcome my Shadow once more, I will always be a step behind, a cut below. I will always be in their shadow. I will always be dependent, upon Rise, upon Naoto, upon Kanji, upon Yosuke and Chie and Yukiko. They are the reason I fight, and why I keep on living.

Without my friends, I am nothing.

I have only had to face the world on my own once. Without anybody to guide me. Without anybody to comfort me.

It was one of the deadliest, most harrowing trials of my life.


	2. Chapter One: Black World

Chapter One: Black World

_Where the hell am I?_

The last thing Takuma could remember was falling asleep in his bed. Now, he was wide awake, wearing his school uniform, in the middle of a forest in the dead of night.

As Takuma sat up, he could feel a weight hanging from his back. He reached backwards and felt the familiar hilt of his two-handed great sword, Gaia. He couldn't remember having strapped it to his back, but was grateful for its presence in this unfamiliar territory.

Takuma stood up, stretching his arms and legs. He touched his hip, and sighed inwardly when he found his Evoker. He gingerly drew it from its holster. The sleek pistol appeared undamaged. He found himself pondering why it had to look like a gun.

A rustling sound behind him snapped Takuma from his reverie. He quickly shoved the Evoker into its holster. _A last resort, I guess._ "Hello?" he called out, trying not to sound as frightened as he felt.

When he heard no response he drew Gaia from its sheath and mentally called, _Kin-Ki_. He immediately felt his strength and stamina rise, while his speed and agility dropped slightly. "Hello? Who's there?"

Still no response. Holding Gaia out in a defensive position, he slowly advanced towards the sound.

Takuma heard the rustling again, and whirled around just in time to swat a huge _thing_ away as it was lunging towards him. It yowled in pain, hitting the ground with a thud. Almost immediately, it recovered and flung itself at Takuma again. Takuma swung Gaia down, slicing the beast in two. Panting, he dropped his grip, the tip of Gaia resting on the ground.

Just then, another of the beasts leapt towards him, knocking him to the ground. Gaia spun away, out of his grasp. Takuma tried pushing the thing away, but it was too heavy. It dug its fangs into his arm, and he screamed. Even with his increased stamina, he could feel his health draining. Gritting his teeth, he reached down for his Evoker.

Suddenly, the weight on his chest lifted, and Takuma gasped. He heard a squeal, and then silence. No, not silence; there was someone else breathing.

_Ishtar_, Takuma commanded internally. At once, his strength faded, followed by an increased mental capacity. Takuma looked at the injury on his arm and grimaced. _Diarahon,_ he thought, and the flesh knitted back together.

He sat up on his arms to look at his mysterious savior. There stood a girl no more than ten years old, panting above the corpse of the beast that had attacked him. She had long hair, tied up in two ponytails, and a long jacket, although in the darkness Takuma couldn't tell what color either was. As she turned around, Takuma gasped; her eyes were glowing red.

"What do you think you're doing, wandering outside the monoliths?" the girl said, sounding annoyed. "Were you _trying_ to get yourself killed?"

"Uhh…." Dozens of questions bounced around Takuma's head. Monoliths? What was this girl talking about? And how was she able to kill this terrible monster? Drawing upon Ishtar's calm intellect, he took a deep breath. "You saved my life. Thank you."

The red-eyed girl gave a smug grin. "You're welcome, Mister Death-Wish."

Takuma's pride flared. "Hey, I was fighting for my life here! I don't want to die!"

"Oh?" The girl tilted her head to one side. "Then what are you doing outside the monoliths?"

There it was again. "Monoliths? What monoliths?"

The girl laughed. "You're joking, right?"

Takuma glared at her.

The girl gawked. "You really don't know? The giant Varanium monoliths surrounding the Tokyo area, silly."

Varanium? Takuma had never heard of such a substance. "What's Varanium?"

"Are you for real? It's the stuff that keeps the Gastrea away, silly."

Takuma took another deep breath. "At the risk of asking a really stupid question, what's the Gastrea?"

The girl froze for a long while. "Okay, Mister. You must be making this up now."

Takuma sighed. "Oh, well, I'll just figure that out later. You said we're near Tokyo?"

"Well, the Tokyo Area."

"Tokyo…. That's a long way from Inaba. How the hell did I get to _Tokyo_?"

The girl looked perplexed. "Inaba? I've never heard of Inaba."

"I'm not surprised. It's a small town in northern Japan. Lovely place. The fog's a bit off-putting, though." He stood up slowly. "Did you see where my sword went?"

"Small town? Southern Japan…?" the girl said ominously. "Your Inaba probably got overrun by Gastrea."

Takuma picked up Gaia from where it fell. "Who are you, anyway? How the hell did you kill that…that thing?" He pointed Gaia at her. "How can I be certain you won't do the same to me?"

The girl giggled. "That sword's just normal steel; it'll never hurt a Cursed Child like me."

"Wanna bet?" _Kin-Ki_.

Somewhere nearby, a gunshot went off. The bullet whistled right past Takuma's ear. He whirled around. There stood before him a tall, slender young man who looked to be around Takuma's own age.

"What the hell?" Takuma shouted. "You could've about killed me!"

"That was a warning," the boy said. "Next time you threaten Enju-chan, I'm putting a bullet through your head."

The girl—Enju, apparently—flung herself at the newcomer. "Rentaro! This guy's being really silly. He says he doesn't know about the monoliths, or Varanium, or even Gastrea, even though one of them almost killed him!"

_So that's what that thing was. A Gastrea._ "Look, I was asleep in my bed, and the next thing I know, I'm in this forest with just my sword and my Evoker. I don't know anything about Gastrea or Varanium or monoliths. I just want to go back to Inaba where I can kill Shadows and know what the hell they are!"

Rentaro just stared blankly at Takuma. "What's your name?"

Takuma gripped Gaia harder. "Why the hell should I tell you that?"

"Because you have a sword and I have a gun."

_Fair enough._ "Yuuto. Takuma Yuuto."

"Yuuto, literally nothing you just said made any sense at all. There is no way someone could survive in this world as long as you have without knowing all that."

_Well, I managed somehow,_ Takuma thought bitterly. "Well, you see, _Rentaro_, where I'm from, there's no Gastrea or Varanium or whatever the hell else I should know about but probably don't."

Enju tried to jump at Takuma, but Rentaro held her back. "Rentaro-kun is Satomi-sama to you!"

Rentaro's eye's narrowed. "That's not possible. The entire world has been taken over by Gastrea."

"Well, then, if that's impossible," Takuma said, lowering Gaia slightly, "then either I'm lying, or I'm from another world."

Rentaro and Enju looked at one another, then began laughing. His temper finally snapping, Takuma lunged at Rentaro with a vicious slash. Rentaro swiftly blocked the strike with his arm. Gaia clanged off the limb. It was made of solid metal, Takuma realized.

"Do I _look _like I'm joking? Something is _seriously_ wrong here, and I intend to find out. With or without you, Enju, Satomi." With that, Takuma spun around and stormed off.

_Maybe I shouldn't have switched Ishtar out,_ he thought grimly. _She wouldn't have let their ridicule go to my head. _He looked up at the stars. _I should head to Tokyo. Perhaps someone willing to listen to me will be there._


	3. Chapter Two: Shadow of Doubt

Chapter Two: Shadow of Doubt

_Takuma Yuuto._

Rentaro Satomi couldn't get the young stranger out of his head. He was lying on his mattress, listening to the soft sounds Enju was making in her sleep. Rentaro, however was finding sleep quite difficult after his bizarre encounter in the woods.

Could he have been playing some sort of prank? That was the most plausible explanation, but it was full of holes. Yuuto's eyes weren't those of a prankster, and the way he'd handled that sword meant that he was quite skilled with it. Was he insane? That made more sense. It would explain why he tried to fight a pack of Gastrea, not to mention a Cursed Child, without a Varanium weapon, as well as his confusion as to what he was doing near Tokyo. Still, Yuuto should have, at the very least, known about the Gastrea.

Perhaps he was telling the truth when he said he was from some other world, a world without Gastrea? That was the least likely scenario, but it would certainly explain a lot. Enju had said that Yuuto had been bitten by one of the Gastrea, and yet, although his sleeve was torn, the skin beneath was smooth and unbroken. Had he also somehow been able to expel the Gastrea virus from his body? That wasn't an ability that could be found anywhere on Earth.

Realizing he wouldn't be able to sleep until he solved his quandary, Rentaro slid out of bed and stood up, stretching. He walked over to where his cell phone was and punched in a number by memory. He held the phone to his ear, waiting.

After three rings, the other line picked up. "Rentaro-kun? What are you doing awake at this hour?"

Rentaro smiled, despite himself. "I could say the same about you, Sensei."

Sumire Muroto was the doctor who had tended to Rentaro's grievous wounds on that fateful day ten years ago. Dr. Muroto gave Rentaro his Varanium leg and arm, as well as his prosthetic eye. She had never forgiven herself for it.

"Sensei, are there other worlds? Worlds where there aren't any Gastrea?"

"Calling me in the middle of the night about one of your nightmares? I'm honored." Sumire's voice was unctuous with sarcasm.

"No, Sensei, nothing like that, it's just…I met this guy today. He claimed to have never heard of Gastrea."

"You believed him? You're more gullible than I thought, Rentaro-kun."

"I didn't, not at first, but…." Rentaro's voice trailed off.

"Rentaro-kun?"

"He got bitten by a Gastrea, and somehow purged the virus. I've never heard of that happening before."

"Hmm…. It's possible, I suppose, that he's from another world. Did he say where he's from?"

"It was some place I'd never heard of. I think he said…Inaba."

There was a long pause on the other end of the line. "Sensei?"

"Are you sure he said Inaba?"

"Pretty sure, Sensei. Why?"

"I'd like to meet this person right away."

"Well, I'm not entirely sure he wants to meet you, Sensei."

"What, are you embarrassed of me?" Rentaro could almost hear the mocking smile. "Anyway, just find him and bring him to me.

"Why's that?"

There was another long pause. Rentaro was about to assume Sumire had hung up when she said, "I think he's telling the truth." 

BREAKBREAKBREAKBREAK

Takuma stumbled into a tree and leaned against it, panting. He had lost count of how many times he'd evoked his various Personae, but he could tell that his psyche was at its breaking point; he was seeing stars, and the world was spinning around him. He was having trouble thinking straight. As he struggled to keep bile down, he closed his eyes and counted slowly to ten.

By the time Takuma had opened his eyes, the ground felt a bit steadier beneath his feet. Gritting his teeth, he pushed away from the tree and pressed forward. After about five minutes, he realized that he hadn't encountered any Gastrea for a while. Before long, he reached a clearing that was dominated by a gargantuan black pillar. _A monolith_, Takuma realized.

Takuma vaguely recalled something the red-eyed girl had said. _"What do you think you're doing, wandering outside the monoliths?"_ Could this be one of those monoliths that she had been talking about? Using Gaia as a crutch, Takuma lurched his way over to the monolith.

When he was about ten feet away, his sword slipped, and he fell to the ground. He lacked the strength to stand, so he just lay there, feeling the darkness closing in. As he slipped into unconsciousness, he thought he could hear someone—or something—walking towards him. _Oh, well, I tried my best,_ he thought, and then there was only blackness.


	4. Chapter Three: Comprehension and Fury

Chapter Three: Comprehension and Fury

It was like looking into a mirror. A dark, twisted mirror. The thing that looked like Takuma was taunting him, revealing his darkest feelings. No, this wasn't him, he couldn't accept this, it couldn't be true—

"YOU"RE NOT ME!"

Takuma sat up suddenly, now wide awake. He was panting heavily.

"Are you quite all right?" a voice beside him said.

Takuma jumped and turned. Sitting there was a figure in a long white lab coat. He looked to be in his early twenties. "How are you feeling?"

"…Fine. Where am I? What happened?"

"I was hoping you could tell me that. Do you remember anything?"

Takuma closed his eyes, then snapped them open. His right hand went over his shoulder; his left went to his hip. "Where's my sword? And my Ev—my gun?"

"Don't worry, we've got them. Now, could you tell me your name?"

"…Yuuto. I'm Takuma Yuuto."

"Excellent, Mr. Yuuto. Now, where do you live?"

"Inaba."

"Inaba? Where's that?"

"Northern Japan. You know, you're the third person I've met in the last twenty-four hours who hadn't heard of Inaba. You're actually the third person I've met in the last twenty-four hours, period. Three for three, I guess. Can I have my sword back?"

"Not yet, Mr. Yuuto." The medic smiled kindly. "What are you doing in the Tokyo Area if you live in northern Japan?"

"Beats me. I'd like to know that, too."

"I see." The medic pulled out a clipboard and scribbled a few lines on it. "Now, Mr. Yuuto, we found you unconscious next to the monolith. Do you have any idea how you got there?"

"I was fighting Gastrea, and then—"

"Oh, so are you a civil officer?"

"A civil—," Takuma shook his head vigorously. He figured it would be better to go along with it than explain the truth. "Sure."

"Where's your Initiator? We couldn't find her near you."

"Initiator…? Uh, I don't have one. Anyway—"

"So does that mean you haven't gotten your Initiator yet?"

"Um, that's right. So I was fighting for my life—"

"What in the world was a Promoter who hadn't even gotten an Initiator yet doing fighting Gastrea?"

Something inside Takuma snapped, and he lunged out of his hospital bed and tackled the medic to the ground. "I don't know! I just _woke up_ out there, and I barely survived!"

Takuma heard a series of clicks and looked up. Half a dozen armed guards had come in and were pointing tranquilizer guns at him. Slowly, Takuma got off of the bewildered medic, and stood up.

"Actually, if it hadn't been for that girl…that red-eyed girl, and her companion, I'd probably be dead."

"A Cursed Child? Do you remember her…erm, companion's name?" The medic's voice was rather high-pitched and shaky.

Takuma clenched his fists. "I'll never forget his name. _Rentaro Satomi_."

He saw an expression of shock register on the faces around him, and used the opportunity to launch himself between the guards. He began running down the hall. _I need to find Gaia and my Evoker. Quickly!_

Takuma stopped at a door labelled CONFISCATIONS and stopped. _This must be where they are!_ He prepared to ram his shoulder into the door, when he felt one, two, three sharp pains in his back. He flinched, and then felt the darkness closing in once more. _Dammit, not again._

BREAKBREAKBREAKBREAK

The medic stared at the unconscious body strapped into the bed. Looking at the slumbering youth, it was hard to tell that he was in a vicious rampage a mere twenty minutes earlier. The medic wasn't sure if he believed Yuuto, but one thing was for sure: whoever Yuuto was, and wherever he came from, he was dangerous.

The medic had made sure that Yuuto was firmly secured, but the force with which the young man had tackled him earlier was fierce, so there was no telling if the restraints would hold. Something was different about Yuuto, something supernatural. Of course, it was possible that Yuuto had simply charged forward powered by rage, but the medic hadn't said anything that would ignite someone's fury. At least, he didn't think so….

There was also that name. Of course, everyone in the Tokyo Area knew the name Rentaro Satomi; he was, after all, the hero who had destroyed Aldebaran. This was an obvious play for time; there was absolutely no way that this short-tempered teenager had come into contact with Satomi. Still….

Yuuto showed no signs of Gastrea infection, and yet, there had been a tear in his sleeve that had no other explanation. Had the youth somehow been able to neutralize the virus?

The medic could only think of one person to contact for such a situation. He pulled out his cell phone, pressed a speed dial button, and listened. The phone rang three times, then the other end picked up. "This is Muroto."

"Hello, Dr. Muroto. This is Suzuki. I'm the medic over at Monolith 16. We've picked up a civilian who seems to be resistant to the Gastrea virus, and we'd like your input."

"Resistant to the virus? Is this civilian, by any chance, from Inaba?"

"Yes. How did you—"

"Bring him to me as soon as you can," the doctor said. Then the line went dead.

Suzuki sighed heavily. He was going to have a hell of a time getting the temperamental youth to Muroto.


	5. Chapter Four: Questions Unanswered

Chapter Four: Questions Unanswered

Eight armed guards slammed Takuma down into a chair and chained his legs. Takuma fought violently to rip free of his straitjacket, but to no avail. A ninth guard dropped Takuma's sword and Evoker on a nearby table. After the guards had finished securing him, they left, leaving him alone. Takuma looked up and saw that there was, in fact, another person there with him: a woman sitting cross-legged on a desk, with long, wavy hair falling in front of her face, and wearing a white lab coat.

_Great, they must think I'm some sort of freak, and this woman's going to cut me open or something._ "Who are you? What the hell is going on?" Takuma spat.

The woman smiled playfully. "Why? Are you afraid of me?"

Takuma scoffed. "Afraid? Of you? Why would I be afraid of you? What the hell am I doing here?"

"Hmm. Well, how about needles? Are you afraid of needles?"

"Needles? What do needles have to do with anything? Answer my questions, dammit!"

"Well, Mr. Yuuto, you're resistant to the Gastrea virus. I'm going to have to run some blood tests."

Takuma stopped his struggling for a moment. "Gastrea…virus? You mean, that _thing_ that almost killed me tried to…to _infect_ me?"

"Wow, he wasn't kidding; you really _don't_ know anything," the black-haired woman said under her breath.

"'Him'? Who…." Takuma strained suddenly against his chains. "Was it Satomi? It was Satomi, wasn't it?"

"Bit of a sore spot, huh?" The woman chuckled.

Takuma gritted his teeth, then took a deep breath, and exhaled. "Well, if Satomi was telling you about me, he probably also told you that I'm from some place nobody's ever heard of."

"What, you mean Inaba?"

"Yeah, Inaba. Surprised Satomi remembered the name. Surprised _you_ remembered the name." Takuma took another deep breath. "Anyway, I hate to break it to you, Doc, but there's nothing special about my blood."

"Oh? Then how were you able to neutralize the virus?"

Takuma smiled darkly. "Like I'd tell you. You'd never believe me, anyway. You still haven't answered my questions, Doc. What the hell is going on?"

"Well, Yuuto-kun, let me make you a deal. You tell me what I want to know, no matter how unbelievable it is, and I'll tell you what you want to know."

"Tch. Fine," Takuma said reluctantly.

"Excellent. Now, Yuuto-kun, how did you get here?"

"Didn't you just watch all those guards drag me in here?"

"So you have a sense of humor. Yuuto-kun, that's not quite what I meant."

"Oh, did you mean how I got to Tokyo?"

"I meant, how did you fall out of your timestream?"

"Time…stream? As in, an alternate reality? What makes you say that?"

The doctor chuckled. "Here's the thing, Yuuto-kun. Everybody knows that the Gastrea overpowered humanity ten years ago. What most people _don't_ know, or don't remember, is that the Gastrea have been around for quite a while longer than that; the first Gastrea appeared around twenty years ago. In Inaba."

"Inaba? But, but…that's my home! None of these Gastrea things are there!"

The long-haired woman put a finger on her lip. "Shush. Let me finish my story. Anyway, Inaba was among the first towns to be destroyed by the Gastrea. It was destroyed in December of 2011. I'm sorry, Yuuto-kun, but Inaba doesn't exist anymore."

"December of 2011? But—but that was just last year! That was when—," Takuma suddenly froze.

"This is a different timestream, Yuuto-kun. Also, that was twenty years ago, not last year. You seem to have jumped forward in time, as well as having jumped realities."

Takuma slumped back in his chair. How could Inaba be gone? Did that mean all his friends…Rise, Kanji, Naoto…? He clenched his fists. He would not accept this; Inaba couldn't be gone. "So, Doc, you want to know how I healed myself? Very well. I used a Persona."

"A Persona? What do you mean?" The doctor looked flabbergasted; it was obviously not at all what she had expected.

"It's difficult to explain. It'd be easier if I showed you. Could you hand me my Evoker? It's that thing that looks like a handgun."

The doctor walked over to the table and picked up the Evoker. "How do I know you won't just shoot me with this?"

Takuma swallowed a snort. "That's not how an Evoker works, Doc. I mean, it's called an _Evoker_. And that's what it does; it evokes."

She looked at him suspiciously. Takuma could tell she was weighing her options. _Well, I just have to give her a little nudge._ "C'mon, Doc. Are you really going to let caution prevent you from potentially discovering a cure for this virus of yours?"

That seemed to tip the scale. The doctor picked up a scalpel from among her surgery supplies and walked over to Takuma. She tore a gash in the left side of his straitjacket large enough for him to move his arm freely. She placed the Evoker in his hand, then stepped back. "Now, show me how this Evoker works."

Takuma smiled. "Now, before I do, I'd like to apologize in advance. It's nothing personal, I just have to go home."

Confusion shrouded the woman's face. "What are you apologizing for, Yuuto-kun?"

"Tricking you." Takuma raised the Evoker up to his temple. "And also for what I'm about to do to your lab. Goodbye, Doc."

Alarm spread across the doctor's features, and she moved to stop Takuma, but it was too late. He'd already pulled the trigger.

BREAKBREAKBREAKBREAK

Rentaro came rushing into Sumire's lab, Enju hot on his heels. "Sensei, what's wr—," he began, then froze in his tracks.

Over by the wall, where there used to be one of several computer monitors, there was now a giant, ragged hole. The edges of the hole were charred and smoking, as if it had been put there by a gargantuan flamethrower. "Sensei, who did this?" Rentaro asked, apprehension mounting.

"That kid you were telling me about. Yuuto-kun," Sumire said, stepping out of the shadows. Despite the destruction of part of her lab, she seemed almost ecstatic.

"Yuuto-kun? That silly boy we met in the woods a few days ago?" Enju piped in.

"Sensei, you don't seem too upset. What happened?"

"Oh, nothing." Sumire grinned maniacally. "That kid might be the cure for the Gastrea virus, that's all."


	6. Chapter Five: Victim of Night

Chapter Five: Victim of Night

Takuma was walking down one of the main streets of Tokyo. With the pocket money he'd had on him when he had fallen into this strange world a few days ago, he had bought a cheap kendo bag and some ramen noodles. Gaia was safely tucked away in the bag, which was slung over his shoulder. Takuma didn't really have a plan; he was just heading north.

Takuma slurped up the last of his ramen, then scanned the area for a trash can. He spotted one next to an alleyway, so he walked over and dropped the ramen container inside. He was just turning to continue walking when he heard a gunshot, followed by a muffled scream. He quickly spun around, now perfectly still. After a few seconds, he heard another gunshot. The sound came from down the alley. He undid the clasp on his Evoker's holster and cautiously walked down the alley.

After about twenty seconds of walking, Takuma heard a third gunshot. The loudness almost made him jump. He quickened his pace and turned a corner, then froze in his tracks.

The sight before Takuma left him thunderstruck. There stood two men who were holding a young girl by each of her arms. One of them had a hand over her mouth. A third man was holding a smoking pistol, pointed straight at the girl.

When the three men heard Takuma's approach they all looked up at him and sneered. The one holding the gun, who seemed to be in charge, said, "Get lost, kid. This has nothing to do with you."

"Oh? Well, what about her? What's she got to do with it?"

"She's a Cursed Child, kid. She's a Gastrea."

Takuma looked the girl up and down. There were several bullet holes in her stomach; she had to be in intense pain. "Doesn't look like a Gastrea to me. What'd she do to you, anyway?"

The man with gun turned towards Takuma. "She _exists_. Now, I'm not warning you again, kid. Get lost."

"Oh, I see how it is," Takuma said scornfully. "It's nothing personal, you just loathe the fact that she's a Cursed Child, so you're ganging up on her and killing her. It all makes sense now."

The man raised his gun. "I warned you, kid."

Takuma drew his Evoker. "You really don't want to do that."

The man snarled and pulled back the hammer on his gun. Takuma raised his Evoker up to the side of his head, said, "_Persona,_" and pulled the trigger.

A whirlwind suddenly kicked up, and the huge, flat-faced oni Kin-Ki took form before Takuma. The man with the gun seemed startled for a moment, then emptied his chambers at the Persona, to no avail.

"_Vile Assault,_" Takuma commanded, and Kin-Ki smashed the man into the wall with a vicious sweep of his arm. Takuma heard several bones break before the man slumped to the ground, unconscious. Kin-Ki faded from existence.

The other men dropped the girl and began running away. _Oh no you don't,_ Takuma thought, then shouted, "_Saturnus!_" and pulled the trigger again. The armless, legless, ever-burning form of the Persona took form, and a wall of fire erupted in front of the men who were running away. Takuma advanced towards them menacingly as his Persona faded. He could smell urine from when the two mens' bladders had released.

Takuma holstered his Evoker and unzipped his kendo bag. He drew Gaia from it, brandishing it at the cowering men. One of them tried to flee by running past Takuma, but Takuma just lifted Gaia and slammed it into the man's forehead. He grabbed the other man by the lapels and slammed him against the wall, holding Gaia at his throat.

"You crawl back to whatever hole you came from, and you tell them that the next person who harms an innocent child will have Takuma Yuuto to answer to. Am I understood?"

The man nodded vigorously. Takuma flung him to the ground, away from the flames. _"Get lost."_

The man scrambled to his feet and rushed away. Takuma set Gaia down, then drew his Evoker again. "_Loki_," he commanded, and pulled the trigger. The icy trickster appeared, then surrounded the inferno in a giant block of ice. The two equalized one another, and the fire went out.

Takuma put Gaia back in the kendo bag, then slumped against the wall. He was using high-power skills way too liberally, he knew that, but he wouldn't have forgiven himself if he'd have let an innocent child die when he could have done something to prevent it.

After Takuma had recovered, he walked over to where the girl was. She was lying there, on her side, in an ever-growing pool of her own blood. Ever so gently, Takuma picked up her wrist and laid three fingers on it. He could feel the weak throbbing of her pulse and sighed in relief.

Takuma checked his mental strength. Yes; he had enough energy to heal this girl, but it would leave him feeling like he hadn't slept in days. Although he was in possession of numerous powerful Personae, his inexperience meant that his physical and mental health, the resource from which his Personae drew power, were both severely underdeveloped, when compared to his fellow Persona wielders. If he healed this girl, he would almost certainly pass out, and be at the mercy of any mugger, officer, or Gastrea that found him.

He didn't waste a heartbeat.

Takuma drew his Evoker and placed it against his temple. "_Ishtar_," he whispered, and pulled the trigger. The form of the horned goddess materialized above him. She held her hands out towards the dying child, and the girls wounds began to close. When she had been restored to full strength, Ishtar disappeared, and Takuma immediately felt the drain on his psyche. For a moment he felt like he was suffocating, then everything returned to normal. _I guess I'm stronger than I thought._

Takuma looked down at the girl. There was blood all over her faded clothes, and several ragged holes in her shirt from the bullets, but she seemed to be sleeping peacefully. Takuma shed his school jacket and wrapped it around her, then picked her up and set her down away from the pool of blood. He turned to the two men he had knocked out and considered simply leaving them there. He shook his head. The man whose ribcage he'd shattered needed medical attention, quickly, and Takuma definitely didn't have the energy to evoke Ishtar again.

Takuma walked out of the alleyway and checked around him. There was a bicycle shop nearby. Rentaro walked inside.

The store owner looked up and smiled. "Good evening, sir, how can I—"

"I need to use your phone," Takuma said. Without waiting for confirmation, he reached across the counter, picked up the phone, and dialed the police.

"Emergency response. What's the emergency?"

"Can you track this phone?" Takuma said abruptly.

"Yes we can, sir. What—"

"Good. I'm Takuma Yuuto. There's an alley just across the street of this bicycle shop. I got into a fight with a few men down there, and I nearly killed one of them. That's all." Takuma hung up. He replaced the receiver, gave a nod to the now-terrified shop owner, and said, "Have a good night."

Then Takuma turned around, headed out of the store, and kept walking north.


	7. Chapter Six: Two's Company

Chapter Six: Two's Company

_Takuma was walking home from his school. His route home took him past the municipal landfill. As he walked past, he heard voices. Nothing strange about that; many people came to the landfill to loot for potential valuables. He was just about to shrug it off and resume his walk, when he caught something in the corner of his eye. He quickly spun back around to look at it._

_It was a butterfly, unlike any he'd ever seen. It was a fluorescent blue that almost seemed to be glowing from within. As Takuma stared at it, something inside him told him to follow it. The butterfly began fluttering into the landfill, and Takuma followed after it._

_It fluttered up to a large pile of garbage, resting on an old TV set. Takuma climbed towards it, and noticed the voices he'd heard earlier were becoming clearer. He reached the top of the mountain of trash and saw—_

Takuma awoke with a jolt. For a moment, he didn't know where he was, until he remembered that he'd ducked into an alley as far from where he'd defended the young girl as he could get. He thought back on his dream, and chuckled. After countless nights reliving his encounter with his Shadow, it was a relief to dream of something different.

Takuma hadn't thought of that fateful day six months prior in a very long time. No, not six months; if that mad scientist was to be believed, that encounter had occurred nineteen years ago. Time-travel logistics aside, he wondered why his subconscious had turned to _that _day.

Takuma stretched and ran his fingers through his black, unkempt hair. His hair felt stiff and greasy, but that was only to be expected. Takuma sat up, taking measure of his situation.

The main obstacle he would face would be finding Inaba in the first place. Takuma had, of course, traveled back and forth between Tokyo and Inaba once or twice, but that had been on a train, so there was no telling exactly how far or in what direction he'd need to go. That would probably best be solved by finding the Samegawa River on a map, and following it.

After that, how would he get food? Hunting wasn't an option; Takuma's only gun was his Evoker, and he had no chance of making a working bow. There was absolutely no way he'd be able to recognize edible plants, either. That left fishing. He supposed that, if it came down to it, he could turn a sleeve into a fishing line and tie it to the end of a stick, but the thought of removing any more of his protection from the elements was an unappealing one. He wouldn't need the kendo bag once he left Tokyo, so he might be able to use that.

Even if he succeeded in catching a fish, how would he cook it? He might be able to cut down twigs and branches with Gaia, but he couldn't imagine how he'd start a fire without using a Persona, and he didn't want to start a forest fire just so he could cook his trout. Takuma rubbed his face with his hands. Why did he always have to be so _impulsive_ all the time?

Takuma stood up and stretched, joints cracking. He might as well set out and find a map. Hopefully, he had enough money for that and some breakfast. He had been carrying about 20,000 yen with him, but he wasn't sure how much longer that would last. He slung his kendo bag over his shoulder and began walking toward the street.

He walked back towards the bike repair shop, back to where he'd almost let his anger get the best of him. He seemed to recall a breakfast place over by there, and he didn't want to waste time searching for food. He approached the restaurant and took a seat inside. A waitress took his order of bacon and eggs, and he leaned back in his chair.

Takuma glanced up at a nearby TV screen. There was a reporter discussing an incident that had occurred the previous night involving three men, two of which were now hospitalized. There was a name and a poorly drawn sketch. _Wow, that didn't take long,_ Takuma thought as his name scrolled across the screen.

A man's shout snapped Takuma out of his reverie, and he looked suddenly over at a table in a corner. A man—the manager, by the looks of it—was yelling at who looked like a young girl with silvery-blonde hair. He seemed to be shouting about the girl underpaying the bill. Takuma was about to look away when he did a double take.

The girl was wearing a very oversized gray coat, with a sizeable tear on the right sleeve. _Son of a bitch._

So, the girl from last night was alive and well, it seemed. She was also trying to freeload breakfast.

Takuma continued watching the scene unfold. The manager was getting more and more enraged, until finally, he grabbed the girl by the wrist and dragged her over to a back door. Without thinking, Takuma stood up and followed them.

The manager practically flung the girl down. When she tried to stand up, the manager yanked her up by the hair. Takuma's eyes widened as he saw the man pull his arm back in preparation for a vicious backhand slap.

Takuma grabbed the man's wrist. While he was caught off-guard, Takuma spun the manager around to face him. The startled man let go of the girl, who slumped to the ground.

"Bit of an overreaction, don't you think?" Takuma said, squeezing the man's wrist.

"She—that street rat—had the gall to order a meal in my establishment, _without _being able to pay for it!" the man spluttered.

"Then you call the police and throw her out! You don't hit them!"

"But—she's—she's a—!"

"She's a homeless girl trying to survive! Have a little heart!" Takuma pushed the manager away. His hand had left an angry red mark on the man's wrist. "If it matters that much, I'll pay for her."

The man spluttered. "But—she's—!"

"Oh, get a grip. Now, how much?"

"F-five thousand yen," the manager stammered.

_Five thousand for breakfast? Damn, Tokyo's expensive._ Takuma counted out the money and pushed it into the manager's hand. The manager stormed off back into the restaurant.

Takuma knelt down next to the girl. "Hey, you alright?"

The girl gave a shuddering nod.

"My name is Takuma Yuuto. What about you?"

"…Y-Yui. My name is Yui."

"Well, Yui, I have a few things I'd like to ask you about. Would you mind sitting with me for a few minutes?"

Yui shook her head.

"Expect the unexpected, Yui," Takuma said taking Yui by the hand. "There's more to the universe than meets the eye."

BREAKBREAKBREAKBREAK

"So, let me get this straight," Takuma said between mouthfuls of scrambled eggs. "This 'Gastrea virus' will cause people to turn into Gastrea. The 'Cursed Children' are people infected since birth. 'Varanium' is the only thing that can stop the Gastrea. Did I miss anything?"

Yui shook her head. "That's about the gist of it."

At first, when Takuma had asked what a Cursed Child was, Yui had let out a startled laugh. After some more discussion, she finally realized that Takuma was serious.

"You gotta admit, it's a little hard to swallow," Takuma replied, "but so are time travel, parallel worlds, and monsters inside TV sets." Takuma dropped his voice suddenly. "And you're one of these Cursed Children?"

"Yes," Yui whispered, barely audible.

"I see." Takuma leaned back in his seat. "Well, this certainly changes things."

"W-what do you mean?" Yui asked, alarmed.

"You know, I recognize my jacket. Last night, if I'd known that that was why those men were doing that…."

Yui looked down. "You wouldn't have helped me? I under—"

Takuma suddenly slammed his hand down on the table, making Yui jump and several customers stare at him. "Uhh…. I thought I had that fly this time!" Takuma stammered, trying to excuse his sudden violence.

Takuma dropped his voice, even lower than before. "Let me get one thing clear with you, Yui. It doesn't mean a damn thing to me whether you're cursed or not. I saved you because those men were going to kill you. If I had known they had such a stupid reason for it…I would have totally lost control. I…wouldn't have stopped at hospitalizing them."

Yui slumped back in her seat, dumbstruck.

Takuma sat up and took a sip of tea. "Don't you _dare_ assume that I ever do something for as ludicrous of a reason as that."

Yui finally found her voice. "S-sorry, Yuuto-san."

Takuma took another sip and set his teacup down. "Just 'Takuma' is fine." Takuma ate the rest of his bacon, drained his tea, and called for the check. "Now, this was a lovely chat, and I think I understand how this world works. If you'll excuse me, I need to find out how to get home." He paid the bill and stood up.

"Wait!" Yui exclaimed grabbing Takuma's wrist. "Please…don't leave me alone…."

Takuma shook off her hand. "Have you seen what's out there? Absolutely not. There's no way I could let someone so young do something so dangerous."

"But it's dangerous here, too!" Yui argued. "Besides, there's no way you'll be able to fight those Gastrea on your own!"

"And I suppose you're going to say you can?"

Yui nodded vigorously. "I can protect myself! And I know how to forage berries, and start fires and—"

"You're not coming with me." Takuma began walking away.

He heard a sniffling sound behind him. He turned around and saw Yui's eyes brimming with tears. He quickly knelt down next to her and whispered, "Come on, don't make a scene."

"But…b-but I w-wanna h-help Yuuto-san," Yui whimpered.

Takuma could feel the eyes of the entire restaurant on him. _The power of crocodile tears. _"Alright, fine," Takuma capitulated.

Yui's demeanor suddenly brightened and she hugged Takuma. "Thank you, Yuuto-san!"

Although he didn't want to admit it, some pert of him knew the extra company would be good for him. _You'd better not make me regret this, kid,_ Takuma thought, awkwardly hugging the girl back.


	8. Chapter Seven: Ripples of Memory

Chapter Seven: Ripples of Memory

"Can I get this one?" Yui asked hopefully, holding up a frilly dress.

"No way. There are so many things out in the forest that you'll get this caught on," Takuma replied, checking the price tag. "Besides, this is out of our budget."

The two of them were in a clothes store at the local mall. Takuma had decided that both of them needed new clothes, since he'd been wearing his nonstop for three days, and she hers for far longer. Even though Takuma still had a lot of money left, he wasn't expecting to leave the mall with more than a hundred yen, since he also needed to get a fishing pole and some sleeping gear.

Yui made a pouty face at him. "But I wanna get this!"

"Sorry, kid. My money, my rules." Takuma picked up a white t-shirt with a bizarre design on the front. "Yui, I was wondering something. I met a Cursed Child when I first showed up here. Her name was Enju. Do you know her?"

"I know _of_ her," Yui said, looking at a rack of dresses. "Her partner, Satomi-sama, is a legend."

"So, on top of being an arrogant teenager who thinks he can boss me around, he's also famous? Great."

Yui spun around and gawked at Takuma. "Yuuto-san met Satomi-sama?"

"Apparently, his way of saying hello is trying to put a bullet in my head. Anyway, this 'Enju' girl, she couldn't be much older than you are, but she killed a Gastrea. Is that normal?"

Takuma was waiting for an answer. When he didn't hear one, he turned towards Yui. "Um, Yui…?"

Yui looked like she was in a daze. "I'm so jealous. I'd love to meet Satomi-sama!"

"Yui, I'm talking to you!" Takuma snapped. It bothered him that someone so insufferable could invoke such awe.

Yui blinked. "Sorry. What were you saying?"

Takuma sighed. "I was asking if it was normal for a grade-schooler to be able to kill one of those Gastrea."

"For a grade-schooler? No. But the Cursed Children have greater strength, stamina, and healing speed than normal humans."

_Figures. I'm stuck with a ten-year-old superhuman pariah who's having a fit over a frilly dress._ "Does that mean you can kick these Gastrea to death too?"

"Not exactly." Yui pulled out a grey t-shirt and held it against her chest, checking it for size. "Enju is a Model Rabbit Initiator, so she's good with jumping and kicking."

"Model Rabbit?" Takuma asked, finding a pair of loose-fitting jeans. "What the hell's that supposed to mean?"

"I don't entirely understand it myself, but the Gastrea…adapted to the animals that were already here, and made them stronger; so Gastrea and Cursed Children have models based which animal they're like."

"Hm. This is getting weirder and weirder." Takuma picked out a belt and a pair of grey socks. "So what about you?"

"Shh!" Yui said suddenly. "Someone might hear you!"

"So?" Takuma asked. "If anyone has a problem with who you are, they'll have to take it up with me." He let his hand rest on his Evoker.

Yui's eyes widened. "Don't hurt anyone…please…."

Getting the Evoker past the mall's security guards had been tough. Takuma looked suspicious enough already, with his filthy clothes and his head being kept firmly pointed at the ground to avoid recognition. The security guards finally let it stay when they saw that it wasn't a real gun—it didn't have a cocking mechanism, and there was no way to open the chamber.

"I'm going to protect you if it comes to it," Takuma replied. All the same he let his hand drop from his holster.

After a bit, Yui said, "…swallow."

"Pardon?" Takuma replied.

"I'm a Model Swallow Cursed Child," she repeated softly. "I can move really fast, and I have a good sense of direction."

"I…see. A good sense of direction, you say? That could be useful." Takuma picked up the rest of the clothes Yui had picked out—pink leggings, a black skirt, and a thin, black hoodie—and started heading up to pay. "You see, I have no idea how to get to Inaba from here, so I need to find the Samegawa River and follow it upstream."

"O-Okay," Yui replied as Takuma handed her back the clothes she'd picked out.

"Alright. Let's get changed and finish shopping," Takuma said.

BREAKBREAKBREAKBREAK

An hour later, the pair were wearing clean clothes and carrying an assortment of survival equipment, including—at Yui's request—a rather large multipurpose knife. The blade looked huge in the girl's hands, yet the way she held it suggested that she knew how to use it, a thought Takuma found simultaneously comforting and disquieting.

As they were walking towards the entrance, Takuma suddenly stopped. Yui walked for a little ways, then turned around. "Yuuto-san? What's the matter?"

Takuma was staring at the sign hanging above the store he'd stopped in front of. The sign said, ELECTRONICS DEPARTMENT.

Yui tugged on Takuma's sleeve. "Yuuto-san, you're not thinking of buying a TV, are you?"

"What? No, I…I just want to look," Takuma said walking inside. Yui followed him nervously.

Takuma walked past all the aisles, to the back of the store. There, he found a wall filled with flat-screen TVs. _Just like Junes,_ he thought with a pang. He stood in front of one of them, staring unblinkingly. As he gazed at the black screen, he began to remember another TV set, six months ago….

_…__he saw three people gathered around a TV set. There were two women and a man, and they looked fairly young—early twenties at the most. One of the women looked almost like she was wearing clothes, although the ends of her arms and legs were encased in metal. The other woman had long, flowing red hair and a thick, white fur coat, which was unusual for May. The man had a tattered, dark red cape, brown pants, and bare arms, which even from as far away as Takuma was he could see were rippling with muscle._

_They were talking about something—Takuma thought he heard "Labrys", whatever that was supposed to mean—and then the woman with metal limbs pushed her arm against the TV screen, and it went all the way through._

_Takuma blinked several times, then looked again—her arm was _inside_ the TV! How could that be possible?_

_The other two people followed the first woman, and they stepped into the TV. Takuma had to bite his cheek to stop himself from letting out a startled laugh._

_After a few seconds, he saw another figure approach the TV. This person was wearing a dark blue cap, a dark blue coat, and dark blue pants, which Takuma recognized. It was Naoto Shirogane, a girl in Takuma's second-year class. He watched as Shirogane approached the TV set—and enter it like the trio from before had!_

_Takuma couldn't believe his eyes. This had to be a dream; there was no other explanation. He was about to turn around and leave when the fluorescent butterfly from before began fluttering again. Pulled by the same compulsion to follow the butterfly, he carefully made his way down to the television. The butterfly landed on the screen and seemed to melt away, inside the TV._

_Almost on its own, Takuma's hand reached toward the screen…._

…and stopped once his fingers made contact. He thought he could see the faintest of ripples spread across the screen, but they were gone as quickly as they appeared. Takuma closed his eyes and exhaled. _I guess there's no Midnight Channel here. Why would there be?_

"Yuuto-san…?" Yui said, mystified.

"I was just…reminded. Of something that happened six months ago." Takuma dropped his hand and turned around. "Although, if that crazy doctor is to be believed, it was closer to twenty years ago."

"What are you…?" Yui queried, obviously still puzzled.

"Forget about it, Yui," Takuma responded. "C'mon, let's get going."


	9. Chapter Eight: Swallow's Tale

Chapter Eight: Swallow's Tale

_Almost on its own, Takuma's hand reached toward the screen…and passed through._

_Takuma thought his heart was going to stop from the shock of it. He couldn't do anything but stare in disbelief at his arm. Ripples were spreading across the screen from where his hand had gone in._

_Suddenly, he felt his arm being sucked inside. Startled, Takuma tried pulling his arm out, but it was like trying to escape quicksand. More and more of his arm slid inside. Takuma began to panic, pulling with all of his might against the mysterious force, to no avail. Within seconds, he was up to his shoulder._

_Then, with a lurch, the screen swallowed him whole._

Something tugged on the fishing pole and snapped Takuma out of his reverie. He held the line steady, until he felt another tug, stronger this time. Takuma stood up, pulling back on the pole and pumping the reel. The trout on the other end came out of the water, thrashing violently. Takuma swung the pole, bashing the trout against a rock. After repeating the process two more times, the trout stopped moving.

It had been four days since Yui and Takuma had left Tokyo, and just the previous day they had found the main body of the Samegawa River. They set up camp, and Takuma had gotten right to catching dinner. He roasted the fish with a spit made of a sharpened twig he'd cut down with Gaia, and seasoned it with some herbs and berries Yui had managed to find nearby. It was still rather bland, but after living off of roots and berries for the past three days, both of them had been glad for some meat.

Takuma picked up his haul—a total of three trout and an amber seema—and headed back to camp. He skewered them on the spit from last night, and attempted to start a fire. After a few minutes of striking Yui's knife against a piece of flint, the moss he'd put on the fire still refused to light. Frustrated, Takuma stood up and walked over to one of the sleeping bags and gently shook Yui. "Rise and shine, Yui."

Yui groaned and rolled onto her back. She slowly opened her eyes. "Good morning, Yuuto-san."

"This is a bit embarrassing, but…I need you to start the fire."

"Again? You're hopeless, Yuuto-san," Yui giggled, worming out of her sleeping bag and walking over to the fire. After about two seconds, a trail of smoke rose from the pile of tinder.

_She makes it look so easy,_ Takuma thought. He stifled a yawn; he hadn't gotten much sleep the past few nights, between his recurring nightmares and standing watch for Gastrea. As he moved back towards the fire, he could feel that his clothes had gotten stiff again. _So much for fresh clothes_.

Takuma began rotating the spit over the fire, allowing the meat to cook. "I hope you're hungry for Inaba trout, kid."

"Anything's better than more roots," Yui replied.

Takuma chuckled. "You can say that again."

It took about twenty minutes for the fish to cook. The two of them ate their breakfast in silence. It was, of course, bland, but food was food. After they ate, the two of them packed up, Yui carrying the fishing gear, and Takuma carrying the rest, and began to walk upstream.

_Inaba, ho,_ Takuma thought to himself, smiling slightly at the thought.

BREAKBREAKBREAKBREAK

"So, Yui, I was wondering something," Takuma said as the pair of them trudged along.

"What's that, Yuuto-san?"

They had been walking for a very long time, only taking a break once, for lunch. It was entering dusk, and both of them were exhausted.

"Where did you learn how to wield a knife like that?"

Yui froze up, startled. "H-huh?"

"The way you hold that knife, and how you fight…that takes training, kid. I mean, I've been using this sword for about six months, and I can still barely handle it, and it's specially designed to be easier to wield." Takuma stopped and turned around. "Granted, a greatsword requires quite a bit more finesse than a knife, but if you try to tell me you were fighting on instinct, I'm going to call bullshit. So, how did learn to use it?"

Yui opened and closed her mouth several times, then dropped her head, abashed. "I…I…I was…I was an Initiator."

"Initiator…?" Takuma repeated. "Some doctor said that to me my second day here. He asked where my 'Initiator' was. What does that mean?"

"Civil officers fight Gastrea in pairs. The Promoter will hold off the Gastrea until their partner—the Initiator, one of the Cursed Children—can finish it off."

"I see." Takuma turned around and resumed following the river. "I guess you could say that my Personae are collectively my Initiator. Except they're 'facades I erect to face hardships', and I summon them with a gun. Oh, and I fight Shadows, not Gastrea."

They walked in silence for a while. "So, how come you're not an Initiator anymore?"

Yui looked down, obviously remembering something painful. "My Promoter…died."

"Oh," Takuma replied. "Um. S-sorry for bringing it up."

"Many Promoters treat their Initiators like…like _things._ But mine…he was different. He treated me like a person." Takuma heard Yui sniffle. "I really miss him."

Takuma couldn't think of anything to say, so he remained speechless. After about a half an hour, he said, "What was his name? Your Promoter, I mean."

Yui didn't say anything, so Takuma resumed walking like nothing had happened, until Yui said, "Sanada-san."

"Sanada?" Takuma turned to Yui, shocked.

She nodded.

"Are you certain his name was 'Sanada'?" Takuma reiterated.

"Yes!" Yui said. "I wouldn't forget my partner's name!"

"You're right. Sorry. It's just…well, I know someone named Sanada."

"Y-you do?"

"Yeah." Takuma unbuttoned the holster on his Evoker and twirled it around on his finger. "He's actually the one that gave me this."

Yui had nothing to say.

Takuma put his Evoker away. "If your Sanada was anything like the Sanada I know, then he was an amazing man, and I don't think I could ever live up to him."

Yui was dumbstruck. "Th-thank yo—"

Takuma suddenly put a hand on Yui's mouth. "Shh."

Takuma closed his eyes and listened intensely. Before long, he heard a _snap_, and what sounded like a low growl. Takuma shrugged off the camping gear and reached back for Gaia, pulling it partway out of its sheath. Yui picked up on what he was doing, and quickly drew her knife.

Takuma heard the growl again, and what looked like a massive wildcat lunged out of the foliage towards him. Takuma quickly drew his sword, swinging it up and down on the Gastrea's head.

Two more lunged out at him. With a horizontal sweep of his arm, Takuma slashed through flesh and muscle, opening one throat and splitting bone in the other.

It was hard to keep track of where Yui was when she fought. She was springing all over the place, making pinpoint turns and jumping off of trees to slash her enemies. The feline Gastrea were fast, but she was so much faster.

Before Takuma knew it, he had been surrounded. Takuma shifted his sword to one hand, grabbed his evoker, twirled it up to his temple, and squeezed the trigger. The massive oni Kin-Ki materialized, and with a devastating sweep of its arm, decimated a swath of the beasts. Kin-Ki turned around and punched another one into the ground, flattening it. A half a dozen of the Gastrea jumped onto the Persona, but to no avail.

Takuma then noticed the ground shuddering. He spun around, and saw what looked like a lion the size of a semi. Takuma raised his Evoker, but the huge Gastrea shot out a tongue like a frog and wrapped it around his hand. Takuma yelled as his hand was compressed into his Evoker. He heard something snap.

Takuma raised his sword in his right hand and swung it down on the tongue. The beast howled in pain, and the severed tongue fell off of Takuma's hand. He gripped his sword in both hands and swung it with all of his might into the giant Gastrea's throat. It sliced through muscle and sinew, becoming lodged halfway in the leonine monster's throat. Takuma shoved the Gastrea with his foot, and Gaia came free, covered in violet blood.

"Yuuto-san!" Takuma heard, and spun around. He saw that Yui had been surrounded by Gastrea, with no hope of escape. Takuma reached for his Evoker—and it was gone. Takuma looked around, and saw it lying on the ground, in pieces. He felt a twinge of sorrow, then pushed it aside and charged. He managed to kill three of the feline monstrosities before another dozen plunged in from the undergrowth. He fought hard, but before long, he saw that he, too, was trapped.

_I need a Persona!_ he thought desperately. However, without an Evoker, he didn't stand a chance.

Well, there was one other way he could summon a Persona. He held out his hand, concentrating on the image of his very first Persona. _I need your help. Please! Persona, Persona, Persona!_

He thought he could see the faint outline of a luminescent blue card, but then it flickered away. _No!_

Just then, one of the feline Gastrea took advantage of Takuma's lapse in concentration and tackled him to the ground. It glared down at him with burning red eyes, licking its chops. Takuma could only stare back, terrified. _Is this the end?_

Suddenly, there was a gunshot, and the Gastrea exploded. There were several sounds of conflict while Takuma lay on the ground, dazed.

After a few minutes, everything was quiet except for the sound of heavy breathing and the rushing of the river. Takuma struggled to sit up, then his vision was filled with a mechanical arm, offering assistance. Takuma grasped it, and was pulled face to face with his savior.

When he saw who it was, Takuma let out a startled laugh, which became an amused chuckle. "Well, I suppose we meet again…Satomi-kun."


End file.
